The following application is incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein: U.S. application Ser. No. 10/910,801 filed Aug. 2, 2004.
The full potential of the telematics industry has yet to be realized in part because of several deficiencies in functionality, features, performance, reliability, cost-effectiveness, and convenience of existing systems. There is a need for a comprehensively improved telematics system. The improved system preferably includes improvements and/or features to address one or more, or any combination of the following problems.
1) Various vehicle devices exist that are designed to provide a vehicle operator with travel-related information. For example, a display coupled to a global positioning system (GPS) may be used to present to the vehicle operator a detailed map showing the vehicle location, a desired destination, and the geographic details of the surrounding area. Under certain situations, the vehicle operator has the opportunity to study the map in exact and thorough detail. An example is a parked vehicle. There are other times, however, when the vehicle operator is too busy operating the vehicle to safely view the displayed information, let alone study the displayed information in exacting detail. This is particularly the case where the vehicle operator is in the midst of a particularly taxing circumstance, for example, driving in heavy traffic, driving at high speed, or otherwise distracted by an emergency situation or telephone conversation. In such situations, the display presentation distracts the vehicle operator because the operator focuses attention on the details shown on the display.
Therefore, there exists a need to provide valuable and timely travel-related information to a vehicle operator while minimizing potentially dangerous distractions to the vehicle operator. See our co-pending application entitled SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR ADAPTABLE MOBILE USER INTERFACE, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/454,390 filed Jun. 3, 2003.
2) Worldwide, regulatory bodies have begun to mandate the use of hands free systems for phone conversations in vehicles. A hands free system enables the driver to carry on a phone conversation without holding a phone to their ear. While some systems incorporate a headset, typically a hands free system comprises a microphone and speaker mounted in the vehicle and connected to a cellular phone mounted in a cradle. Existing systems typically require pressing keys on the phone or on a separate keypad embedded in the dashboard to dial a phone number. Newer systems use voice recognition, implemented as part of the hands free system or embedded phone system, to enable a true hands free operation. Some providers of applications attempt to use hands free systems (a.k.a. hands free kits) in tandem with the user's personal phone to deliver their service, removing the need for an in-vehicle embedded phone.
There exist disadvantages with current systems. A system based on a portable phone mounted in a cradle is inherently unreliable as the phone may become detached from its cradle at the time it is most needed (e.g., because of crash impact.) In addition, the driver may have forgotten their phone outside of the vehicle and only discover that when the phone is needed.
Bluetooth (BT) is a short-range wireless technology originally designed to replace patch cable between personal computers and related peripherals. This technology is making its way into mobile cellular phones to enable them to communicate over short range with other devices. BT applications may be connected to a personal phone in an in-vehicle hands free system. In one scenario, the driver gets into their vehicle and starts driving without pulling their phone out of their pocket. A BT transceiver that is part of the in-vehicle hands free system and the BT transceiver in the phone discover each other and establish a continuous wireless link. The hands free system now uses the driver's personal phone to connect with the cellular network.
The above solution suffers from limitations similar to the cradle solution and more severe. For example, wireless connections are inherently unreliable. On occasions the two systems do not establish a connection when the driver enters the car. Unlike when placing a phone into a cradle, there is no physical, tangible cue to the driver to indicate a likely connection failure. Even after the initial connection has been established, it may be dropped at any time; even in the middle of a conversation. In addition, the phone may be placed at a location in the vehicle with poor cellular reception (e.g. below glass window level) that does not have access to a vehicle mounted external antenna. Lastly, in dense traffic and given BT security issues, conversation privacy may be compromised as it may leak over the BT network to other vehicles in close proximity.
Therefore, there exists a need to provide a more reliable, less costly, hands free vehicle phone system. See our co-pending application entitled SHARING ACCOUNT INFORMATION AND A PHONE NUMBER BETWEEN PERSONAL MOBILE PHONE AND AN IN-VEHICLE EMBEDDED PHONE, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/765,720 filed Jan. 26, 2004.
Voice transmission over a digital wireless network involves capturing sound waves using a microphone and converting them to electrical signals and then binary data. The process comprises sampling, digitizing, and other digital signal processes at the receiver unit (e.g., telematics module or cell phone.)
There is a fundamental difference between the way humans process auditory input and the way automated speech recognition (ASR) servers process voice input. Thus, different algorithms for signal processing should be used. In current applications, however, a single, compromise process is used, with resultant inefficiencies. See our co-pending application entitled METHOD AND DEVICE TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN VOICE CONVERSATION AND AUTOMATED SPEECH RECOGNITION, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/884,902 filed Jun. 18, 2001.
There exist a few locations where a vehicle owner must make a payment based on the location of the owner's vehicle. For example, the owner must make a payment in order to use a toll road or bridge or to park in a pay parking location. Many times when the owner parks in a pay parking location they forget to pay or pay an incorrect amount based on the parking rate that varies depending upon the time and day of the week. When the owner fails to properly remit payment, they can be assessed hefty penalties. Therefore, there exists a need to allow a vehicle owner to easily and accurately pay the required amount when using a toll-based facility or for parking. See our co-pending application entitled VEHICLE PARKING VALIDATION SYSTEM AND METHOD, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/955,476 filed Sep. 17, 2001.
Cellular telephone transmission has long been used in mobile communication. Traditionally, cellular telephone transmission has been used to facilitate conversations between remote individuals. More recently, these same systems have been modified to facilitate the communication of verbal instructions to remote computer systems using speech recognition programs. In these modified systems, the speaker's verbal instructions are converted to digital data instructions, which in turn are used by a computer system to carry out the desired operation. The ability to communicate verbal instructions “hands-free” carries obvious advantages, not the least of which include safety advantages, especially when the speaker is concurrently attempting to operate a vehicle.
The traditional implementation of this type of speech transmission and recognition occurs in one of two ways: (1) sending raw audio (i.e., the speaker's verbal instructions) from a receiver in the vehicle, such as a cellular telephone, to the remote computer system, where the verbal instructions are converted to data instructions; or (2) performing extensive automated speech recognition (ASR) in the receiver (e.g., recognizing words and phrases), and sending the converted digital data instructions to the remote computer system. Both existing implementations suffer from significant disadvantages. Raw audio sent across a cellular network suffers from signal degradation, in turn diminishing the integrity of the audio signal to be converted to digital data instructions and, hence, the accuracy of the ultimate instructions. While converting the audio signal to digital data at the vehicle addresses this problem, it requires expensive computing power in the vehicle, which is logistically and cost prohibitive.
Thus, there is a need for a mobile speech recognition system and method that addresses the disadvantages with the current implementations. See our co-pending application entitled SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR TRANSMITTING VOICE INPUT FROM A REMOTE LOCATION OVER A WIRELESS DATA CHANNEL, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/059,905 filed Jan. 29, 2002.
With advances in on-board vehicle computer systems and wireless technologies, vehicle navigation systems that provide users with current location and driving directions to a desired destination have become a reality. Vehicle navigation systems have taken one of two forms: on-board systems and network-based systems. On-board systems are driven by a computer and associated database resident in each vehicle. These systems generate driving instructions based on user voice or keyboard input and map information stored in the on-board computing system. Network-based navigation systems do not rely on an on-board computer and associated database, but rather provide a voice interface to an off-vehicle computer or human information provider.
Significant disadvantages exist with both forms of vehicle navigation systems. The on-board navigation system requires expensive and quickly outdated computer hardware. Moreover, with the on-board computing approach, the database needs to be updated periodically to maintain current navigation information. Indeed, such systems can never really be up to date or comprehensive as they rely on external updates, typically via a CD-ROM or other removable electronic storage medium. The network-based system requires an open wireless link to the server. In these systems, the user typically dials a number and gives their starting and ending addresses (current location and destination). The system computes the route and vocally recites it to the user turn by turn. If the user hangs up, or it otherwise disconnected, they need to call again and give their new location and the destination address. Maintaining an active phone connection, especially in a situation involving long distance travel, is inefficient and expensive, as well as distracting to the vehicle user.
Thus, there is a need for a system and method that addresses the disadvantages associated with current attempts at vehicle navigation systems. See our co-pending application entitled SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR REDUCING THE AMOUNT OF REPETITIVE DATA SENT BY A SERVER TO A CLIENT FOR VEHICLE NAVIGATION, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/689,504 filed Oct. 21, 2003.
With the increased popularity of wireless telecommunication via cellular phones, personal data assistants, and computers, literally millions of consumers are gaining access to the Internet for information, services, and applications. Mobile telecommunication is especially useful for vehicular travelers, providing them with universal access to information and applications. Attempts have been made to parley traditional mobile telecommunications systems into vehicle-based systems that allow users to more easily and safely gain information and complete transactions from the convenience of their automobile. One such attempt, for instance, allows users to purchase music heard over the radio by contacting an automated purchasing service via a cellular telephone after hearing the music over the vehicle radio. Such attempts, however, are generally limited to a single transaction or information request for only a specific type of product, and do not provide the user with a wide range of information and transaction options related to a variety of products and services. Moreover, such attempts do not incorporate the use of vehicle information, such as vehicle location, traveling speed, and direction, to customize and tailor the information and transaction options to the specific needs of the user.
There is a need for a system and method that provides greater flexibility for a user to obtain information and complete transactions related to a wide range of products and services advertised over the radio, for example, food, music, event tickets, and books. The system and method should also allow a mobile user to obtain customized information and complete transactions associated with broadcast radio content based on specific information related to the vehicle's particular circumstances. See our co-pending application entitled A SYSTEM AND METHOD TO ASSOCIATE BROADCAST RADIO CONTENT WITH A TRANSACTION VIA AN INTERNET SERVER, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/884,854 filed Jun. 18, 2001.
Vehicle-based telematics units connect to a telematics server via a wireless connection in order to receive information with which to interact with the vehicle operator. Presently, when a telematics unit is activated it places a call to a cellular phone number in a cellular network that then makes a connection between the telematics unit and the telematics server. When the vehicle of the telematics unit is not in its local calling area, roaming or long distance fees are incurred for a unit/server session. The telematics unit requires a phone number that is local relative to the present location of the telematics unit in order to access the telematics server without incurring increased communication fees. In order for the telematics unit to call a phone number that is different than its base or default phone number, the user must take the time to figure out what phone number is a proper phone number given the present vehicle location, and must enter that number while operating the vehicle. This imposes a number of problems, one of which is safety. The whole point of the telematics unit is to provide hands-free operation and interaction with the telematics server. Safety is compromised when the user must manually enter a phone number. Also, the user would have to find the proper phone number, which may be hard to locate under the circumstances or be unavailable to the user.
Therefore, there exists a need to provide easier and more cost effective access to a telematics server. See our co-pending application entitled LOCAL PHONE NUMBER LOOKUP AND CACHE, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/059,893 filed Jan. 9, 2002.
Wireless communication grows in importance daily. Cellular telephones have become standard accessories for adults and children. Coffee shops and other public venues are equipped with “wi-fi” connections allowing visitors to access the Internet with wireless-enabled notebook computers, handheld computers, and portable digital assistants. Even automobiles are equipped with wireless communication devices that allow drivers to call for roadside assistance or, if an owner should lock himself or herself out of the car, to telephone a service operator to remotely unlock the car's doors.
Not surprisingly, the proliferation of wireless communication inspires both increased capabilities and commensurate increased demands for wireless communication bandwidths. To name one example, recently cellular telephone vendors have begun to market wireless interfaces that allow for capture of still photographs, short movies, and voice narration. If the popularity of these devices grows as the cellular telephone companies expect them to grow, just as the proliferation of cellular telephones has consumed available telephone exchanges and area codes, proliferation of multifunctional devices will consume available cellular bandwidth.
Unfortunately, just as cellular telephone companies have devised products such as “picture phones,” other technologies doubtlessly will be devised which will require even more wireless bandwidth. This is a costly problem. Once capacity within allocated frequency ranges has been exhausted, additional parallel networks will have to be created in existing frequency ranges. Wireless network base station transceivers provide coverage across a limited geographic area. Thus, coverage is extendable only by deploying additional base station transceivers, antennas, and other facilities in the same way that such infrastructure has been built to create the geographical coverage of existing wireless networks. Without expansion of wireless network infrastructure, wireless communication device users may not be able to fully benefit from wireless communication devices they use.
For example, FIG. 91 depicts a situation 100 concerning an automobile 110 that has suffered mechanical failure. The automobile 110 is equipped with two different wireless communication transceivers. A first transceiver is a conventional wireless telephone configured to communicate with a first communication network 120. The automobile 110 is within a communication range 130 of the first communication network 120, thus an operator of the automobile 110 is able to telephone for assistance.
The automobile 110 also is equipped with a second transceiver using a proprietary communication system which allows the automobile 110 itself and/or its operator to communicate with an automobile service facility through a second communication network 140. Potentially, data communication between a computer system associated with the automobile 110 might even allow for some faults to be corrected remotely. Alternatively, the fault might be able to be remotely diagnosable through the second communication network 140 or, at a minimum, the operators of the second communication network 140 network likely would be better prepared to arrange to dispatch a tow truck or other service vehicles. Unfortunately, as can be seen in the situation 100 depicted in FIG. 91, the automobile 110 is outside of the communication range 150 of the second communication network 140. As a result, any assistance that might be offered through the second communication network 140 is not available to the operator of the automobile 110. Thus, the operator of the automobile 110 is left to determine his or her location and to try to find the telephone number of a towing service. This can be a troubling ordeal, particularly if the operator has driven the automobile 110 to an unfamiliar location.
Thus, there is an unmet need in the art for expanding wireless communication coverage capabilities to support the bandwidth and/or geographical coverage needed to support desired wireless functionality. See our co-pending application entitled SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR DYNAMICALLY CONFIGURING WIRELESS NETWORK GEOGRAPHIC COVERAGE OR SERVICE LEVELS, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/440,023 filed May 16, 2003.
Various vehicle devices exist that are designed to provide a vehicle operator with travel-related information. For example, a display coupled to a global positioning system (GPS) may be used to present to the vehicle operator a detailed map showing the vehicle location, a desired destination, and the geographic details of the surrounding area. Under certain situations, the vehicle operator has the opportunity to study the map in exact and thorough detail. An example is a parked vehicle. There are other times, however, when the vehicle operator is too busy operating the vehicle to safely view the displayed information, let alone study the displayed information in exacting detail. This is particularly the case where the vehicle operator is in the midst of a particularly taxing circumstance, for example, driving in heavy traffic, driving at a high speed, or otherwise distracted by an emergency situation or telephone conversation. In such situations, the display presentation distracts the vehicle operator because the operator focuses attention on the details shown on the display.
Therefore, there exists a need to provide valuable and timely travel-related information to a vehicle operator while minimizing potentially dangerous distractions to the vehicle operator. See our co-pending application entitled REAL-TIME DISPLAY OF SYSTEM INSTRUCTIONS, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/076,874 filed Feb. 14, 2002.
The sound captured by a microphone is the sum of many sounds, including vocal commands spoken by the person talking plus background environmental noise. Speech recognition is a process by which a spoken command is translated into a set of specific words. To do that, a speech recognition engine compares an input utterance against a set of previously calculated patterns. If the input utterance matches a pattern, the set of words associated with the matched pattern is recognized. Patterns are typically calculated using clean speech data (speech without noise). During the comparison phase of recognition, any input speech utterance containing noise is usually not recognized.
In a quiet environment, there is little need for noise reduction because the input is usually sufficiently clean to allow for adequate pattern recognition. However, in a high noise environment, such as a motor vehicle, extraneous noise will undoubtedly be added to spoken commands. This will result in poor performance of a speech recognition system. Various methods have been attempted to reduce the amount of noise that is included with spoken commands when input into a speech recognition engine. One method attempts to eliminate extraneous noise by providing sound recordation at two microphones. The first microphone records the speech from the user, while a second microphone is placed at some other position in that same environment for recording only noise. The noise recorded from the second microphone is subtracted from the signal recorded at the first microphone. This process is sometimes referred to as spectral noise reduction. This works well in many environments, but in a vehicle the relatively small distance between the first and second microphones will result in some speech being recorded at the second microphone. As such, speech may be subtracted from the recordation from the first microphone recording. Also, in a vehicle, the cost of running more wire for a second microphone outweighs any benefit provided by the second microphone.
In another example, only a single microphone is used. In this example, a signal that is recorded when the system is first started is assumed to be only noise. This is recorded and subtracted from the signal once speech is begun. This type of spectral noise reduction assumes that the noise is predictable over time and does not vary much. However, in a dynamic noise environment such as a vehicle, the noise is unpredictable, for example, car horns, sirens, passing trucks, or vehicle noise. As such, noise that is greater than the initial recorded noise may be included in the signal sent to the speech recognition engine, thereby causing false speech analysis based on noise.
Therefore, there exists a need to remove as much environmental noise from the input speech data as possible to facilitate accurate speech recognition. See our application entitled NOISE REDUCTION SYSTEM AND METHOD, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/024,446 filed Dec. 17, 2001.